photo virgin

[chris82]

Im an absolute noob when it comes to photography and my camra is a £111 olympus x-715 digital,i know...its rubish but untill i save up some cash it will have to do.my first pic was of a sun rise and it was pretty good if i do say so myself.I have two questions,what would be a good entry level camera and have you any tips for the mean time until i get that entry level cam

 

[Rob]

Hi there and welcome to TPF!

Probably the most popular two entry level SLR digital cameras are the Nikon D50 (£380 kit) and the Canon EOS350D (£440 kit).

In the mean time, I'd say practise with your camera in manual mode if it has one and learn about exposure times, focal lengths, composition and depth of field. You may be limited in control with a budget compact, but it's the photographer that makes the shot and remarkable results can be had with something as simple as a pin-hole camera.

Think of what you want to photograph and why and get out and shoot. Post your results here and get some feedback and everyone will be able to help you adjust your technique until you can produce what you want. Having an aim in mind is important - read magazines for inspiration and look at other photographers' work.

Rob

 

[chris82]

thanks you sure seem to know what your talking about ill put a thread of that sunrise

 

[LaFoto]

Rob's giving you all the good advice ... instead of just randomly taking pics, if you are interested in photography you will want to learn how to create a photo. It is a deep and thoroughly interesting field with many different aspects about it, so there is much there for you to learn which can also and quite as well be learned with a cheaper camera as with a "better" one. What is supposed to be good in the end is your PHOTO. Not your camera.

And as soon as you have set yourself a goal (why do I want to take a photo of <insert subject of choice> and what do I want to express with it?), try to find ways to really reach it. Define things for you beforehand, then try to express them in your photo. ANY camera can be of help then and you will find out how much fun it is to plan and compose and later see the outcome.

 

[Dom0803]

My advice to you is learn to use your already camera before going into SLR's... there's a huge difference from a point and shoot and a SLR.

Ofcourse you don't have to, but it'd make whenever you do get your SLR a lot more easy and pleasant, as you will know what you need to do to get the desired effect, instead of spending ages flicking through the manual.

 

[chris82]

say i want to buy a cam with a film,surley i cant just leave the film in to the local chemists to be developed.will it cost much to get the equipment to be able to develop them myself

 

[LaFoto]

Well, what you are describing here is what I have been doing with my films since ... erm ... just about forever. I have never had a lab nearby, so it has been post-in development and printing of all my films. Always. So if the service is there ... why not use it?

 

[chris82]

may i see some of you images that were developed in chemists

 

[LaFoto]

Oh well... sure ... though keep in mind what you will see will be scans from print done at home on my own scanner, so the pics I may show you have only been digitalised here at home with some very ordinary (cheap enough for me) material ... but yes, will go look for some pic that is representative ... Like hey, I have an idea right now. Look up my interview here and then go looking for the photo of the boat and the magnolia blossoms. Those two were taken before I went digital, and those two photos are scanned prints. That could be fastest for you.

But I'll still go looking for some for you. OK? (Keep in mind though that I am in Germany so things here might well be different from things in Northern-Ireland).

 

[LaFoto]

OK, view4mheaven, just put up some scanned print pics for you in the General Gallery (see here ).

 

[chris82]

so when i finally get enough cash to buy a good entry level camera should i buy a digital or film cam and would anyone by anychance know the price of good entry level cam in pounds